Chronic sclerosing osteomyelitis: A case report on a rare complication of tooth extraction

Abstract

Chronic osteomyelitis can be a protracted disease often caused by inadequate curettage, injudicious use of antibiotics, and unnecessary delay in treating infected teeth. Failure of treatment of the odontogenic infection may result in decreased vascularization of the affected tissues, walling-off the infected area by relative avascular tissue, the formation of sequestra or reactive sclerosis of the bone. Here, we report a case of sclerosing type of osteomyelitis with periosteal reaction as seen in a middle-aged woman, highlighting how inadequate curettage following a common procedure such as extraction could lead to an uncommon complication.

Keywords

• chronic osteomyelitis
• decortication
• sclerosing osteomyelitis
• tooth extraction